1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved data processing system and, in particular, to an informational system employing position determining equipment, such as Global Positioning System (GPS) equipment. Still more particularly, the present invention provides a method and system for a location-based information retrieval service.
2. Description of Related Art
Most residents of a region or country are law-abiding citizens. Interestingly, a typical citizen""s legal knowledge is usually based on common sense with limited knowledge of actual statutes and regulations. Many citizens gain their legal knowledge from friends, family members, co-workers, or colleagues over a long period of time and through a variety of experiences.
At some point in time, most citizens learn about the general legal principle that one""s ignorance of the existence of a law is not a defense when criminally charged with violating the law. Hence, when a typical law-abiding citizen believes that laws may exist that somehow limit his or her freedom of action, he or she often feels compelled to investigate whether or not any such laws exist.
Learning the extent of laws on a self-determined, need-to-know basis is often sufficient for the activities of most citizens. Generally, a citizen has enough time and resources to discover applicable laws prior to participating in an activity when the citizen has any doubts about the existence of applicable laws. For example, public libraries often have legal information resources, and online legal databases may be researched through the Internet. If necessary, a citizen can consult an attorney for an opinion about the existence of applicable laws prior to engaging in a desired activity. When a law is found that somehow limits the citizen""s freedom of action, the citizen can modify the planned activity so that a law is not violated.
The concept that a legal principle can be communicated to a person through an electronic information medium is particularly important herein. A law is a principle governing conduct, actions, or procedures that is prescribed or formally recognized as binding or enforced by a controlling authority. Legal principles are often promulgated in many forms, such as statutes, rules, regulations, and ordinances, but law may also be found in the whole body of legal practices and customs, such as those principles that are said to be found in common law. For the purposes required herein, though, these distinctions for legal principles are somewhat unnecessary, and the terms may be used interchangeably.
Jurisdiction is another legal concept of which most citizens are aware. Jurisdiction can be defined as a geographical area to which a governmental entity is limited in its power, right, or authority to interpret, exercise, or apply law. A conscientious citizen attempts to learn the laws that are applicable to a citizen""s desired activity within the jurisdiction in which the citizen participates in the activity. Even though a given set of laws is only enforceable within certain jurisdictional boundaries, a person who engages in an activity should be aware of the fact that similar laws may exist in different jurisdictions. A conscientious citizen will learn and obey the applicable statutes and regulations when engaging in an activity in different jurisdictions.
In many instances, though, someone may not have sufficient time or resources to initiate a detailed survey of applicable laws prior to participating in an activity in an unfamiliar jurisdiction. Rather than forego the opportunity to engage in the activity, someone may adhere to known laws from a familiar jurisdiction while participating in the activity in the unfamiliar jurisdiction. In this manner, a person engaging in the activity implicitly accepts the risks involved in potentially violating laws within the unfamiliar jurisdiction about which the person has no knowledge.
In fact, the total number of legal infractions that occur tends to increase over time for a variety of reasons. Even if no new statutes or regulations for a given activity are promulgated, the number of legal violations associated with the given activity tends to increase over time. With an ever growing population, if the same percentage of a given population participates in the particular activity, an increasing number of people tend to engage in an activity that was once possibly enjoyed by relatively few people. Hence, an increasing number of people may tend to violate legal restrictions on that activity.
Over time, standards of living tend to be raised, and people have more disposable income to be used on recreational activities. Since recreational activities are inherently performed only occasionally, participators may often be ignorant of applicable laws. Moreover, diverse recreational activities are continually created, and more statutes and regulations may be promulgated to restrict those activities.
In addition, higher standards of living have created a more mobile population, thereby creating an environment in which more people are unaware of the existence of local statutes or local regulations within jurisdictions in which they spend relatively little time and, therefore, have reduced incentive to learn the local laws.
For example, many recreational activities, such as boating, are often restricted in some manner by a set of laws, and boat operators are aware that boating laws may vary among jurisdictions. However, boating is an inherently mobile activity that may carry the boat""s crew from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. While a conscientious crew may attempt to learn local laws concerning local waterways, there may be many obscure local statutes and local regulations of which the crew is unaware and which are difficult to discover in an on-going manner. As the number of boat owners and operators increases within the growing population, jurisdictions may tend to promulgate boating laws to control the activities of more crowded waterways, thereby making it more difficult for many boat owners and operators to remain aware of currently applicable laws.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a method and a system for providing a legal information service such that conscientious, law-abiding citizens are aware of laws that are jurisdictionally applicable to their activities prior to participating in legally restricted activities.
A method, a system, an apparatus, and a computer program product are presented for a location-based legal information service. A subscriber to the service is assumed to have a data device, such as a mobile handheld device, and the location of the data device is determined through a positioning system, such as GPS or E911. Based on the determined location of the data device, legal information is then retrieved, such as a law or a regulation that is applicable to regulating or restricting activities at or near the determined location. The legal information can be displayed on the data device; the position of the data device can be continually monitored so that the legal information can be continually updated. Alternatively, the legal information can be used to restrict the operation of the data device, e.g., if the legal information is related to a privacy law or regulation.